Moving Histories

In our latest episode, we unpack the Brazilian political thriller The Secret Agent, directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho and starring Wagner Moura. 

History usually remembers the rock stars—Lincoln, Washington, the giants—but Death by Lightning shifts the camera toward the hustlers, dreamers, and delusional outsiders who actually move the machinery of history. In this episode, we explore how the series turns the assassination of James Garfield into a strange and revealing thought experiment about fame, failure, and the fragile human ecosystem behind American history.

History doesn’t sit still in The Testament of Ann Lee—it moves, sings, and repeats itself through bodies in motion. This week, we explore how belief becomes choreography and how cinema turns the past into a living performance. 

Listen as we explore Richard Linklater's latest film about the making of Jean-Luc Godard's radical masterpiece Breathless. 

We end 2025 with a discussion on Chloe Zhao’s new film Hamnet, an adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s historical fiction novel. 

In this episode, we discuss Ken Burns’s recent PBS documentary The American Revolution. Listen as Robert, Kim, and John talk about the rich complexity the film adds to the history and how Burns brings in new voices that challenge the traditional understanding of America’s founding. 

In our latest episode, we discuss the new Netflix series House of Guinness, a historical drama set in 19th century Ireland, from the creator of Peaky Blinders. 

In our latest episode, we dive into the Netflix series American Primeval, directed by Peter Berg and starring Betty Gilpin and Taylor Kitsch. In light of recent assaults on educational institutions and the attempts to erase competing histories of America’s past, this episode and Berg’s series grapples with a complex and haunted past and present-day debates over national identity through a retelling of the 1857 Utah War. 

In our new episode, we look at Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza's 2025 Iraq War film Warfare (2025). 

In this episode, we are joined by UC Irvine Professor of Anthropology Roxanne Varzi for a discussion of The Seed of the Sacred Fig (Mohammed Rasoulof, 2024). 

For our bonus 20th episode, we discuss Ryan Coogler's vampire/historical hybrid film Sinners, starring Michael B. Jordan, Hailee Steinfield, and Miles Caton. 

In this episode, we discuss Walter Salles' new film I'm Still Here, starring Fernanda Torres as Eunice Paiva and set against the backdrop of military dictatorship in Brazil. 

In our latest episode, we discuss Tim Fehlbaum's film September 5, a historical thriller that tells the story of journalists covering the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre. 

We are joined by film scholar Rasmus Greiner (University of Bremen, Germany) for a discussion on Godzilla Minus One (Takashi Yamazaki, 2023). 

In our latest episode, we discuss Brady Corbet's film The Brutalist, a story loosely based on the life of architect Marcel Breuer. 

Listen as our hosts discuss James Mangold's biopic about Bob Dylan, A Complete Unknown, starring Timothée Chalamet.

In this episode, John, Robert, and Kim explore Ridley Scott's sequel to his 2000 masterpiece Gladiator. Listen as they discuss what they saw as the film's strengths and weaknesses in writing a history of the Roman Empire for a new generation of filmgoers. 

In this episode, we discuss the annual Moving Histories symposium in Windsor Ontario, organized by our own Professor Kim Nelson. Listen as some of the leading scholars of the historical film share how they became interested in studying history-on-film, why it is important to learn about it, and some recommended viewing and readings for our listeners. 

For this episode, we are joined by Tim Van Patten, the director of television series such as Rome, The Sopranos, Sex and the City, and the recent Apple TV series Franklin, starring Michael Douglas. 

In our latest episode, we discuss the recent Apple Television series Franklin, directed by Tim Van Patten and starring Michael Douglas as Benjamin Franklin.

In this episode we discuss Jeff Nichols' latest film The Bikeriders, based on Danny Lyon's photography and starring Austin Butler, Jodie Comer, and Tom Hardy.  

In our bonus episode, we sit down with producer Kirk Saduski to discuss bringing history to life in shows like Masters of the Air, Band of Brothers, The Pacific, Game Change,  and John Adams. 

In this episode, we sit down with author and historian Donald L. Miller for a discussion on the Apple TV series Masters of the Air. Listen as we discuss how the lives of World War II fighter pilots were brought to life from page to screen.

For our bonus episode, we sit down with some of the creative team behind the FX series Shogun: writers Maegan Houang and Caillin Puente. Listen as we go behind-the-scenes of the show and explore how the world of 1600s Japan was brought to life in refreshing and exciting ways.  

In this episode, we are joined by Japanese cinema historian Aaron Gerow to talk about the FX series is a unique example of transnational historical filmmaking for a new generation . This episode was edited by Nick Hector with music from Nine Inch Nails.   

Listen as our hosts dive into the HBO miniseries White House Plumbers, discussing comedy as a way of bringing the past to life. 

Listen as our hosts Kim, Robert, and John discuss Jonathan Glazer's harrowing look at the Holocaust in Zone of Interest. In this episode, we explore the ways that historical films like Glazer's engage with more than just our sense of sight. The film's soundscape shapes the viewer's imagination in a way that collapses time between past and present. 

In this episode, we explore Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer (2023). Listen as we discuss how the film offers a new way of thinking about how movies write history and how  the filmmakers provide a refreshing  take on the  biopic sub-genre.  

In this episode, we explore Martin Scorsese's latest film Killers of the Flower Moon. Listen as we discuss how this film brings a hidden history into the public consciousness and how Scorsese uses film to explore ideas about national identity. Edited by Nick Hector, BFE CCEMusic by Nine Inch Nails Ghosts I-IV, Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license

For our first episode, we dive into Ridley Scott's new film Napoleon. Listen as we discuss its characters, visuals, and effectiveness as historical biopic. Edited by Nick Hector, BFE CCEMusic by Nine Inch Nails Ghosts I-IV, Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license